Calvin's Nightmare
by RayLedgend
Summary: Calvin isn't always such a terror. He's got a sweet side, and a vulnerable one, too. Rosalyn finds this out late one night as she's watching the boy. A short, but tender moment between two characters that usually have no patience for each other.


Babysitter and babysat: the relationship is never quite the same between two sets of people. Sometimes, the relationship is one of caring and trust, and yet just as often, it's less a bond, and more a sense of mutual hatred. For Calving and Rosalyn, the latter was borne out for all to see. The two had been known to butt heads. In fact, they had driven each other up the wall so effectively, that it was rarer to see the two acting civilly with one another. And yet, even in distaste, there's room for some affection.

As the 9:00 PM moon began to rise, Rosalyn sat back on the couch, phone in hand and pressed to her ear, looking slightly exhausted, but content. "Hey, Charlie. Yeah, I'm still at the kid's house. Mhm. Still." Her voice had a slightly unhappy tone to it. "Well, his parents wanted to take a trip together for the weekend, so I'm here all night. Right, can't imagine why." Her tone dripped with sarcasm. She sprawled back, stretching her legs across the couch as Charlie spoke back. Whatever he said, it elicited a smile. "Actually, no, Calvin's been asleep for about an hour now. It's finally-."

As if to spit in her face, a wailing cry pierced the tranquil quiet of the house, snapping Rosalyn to attention immediately. The voice was unmistakably Calvin's, much to Rosalyn's chagrin. "Scratch that," she groaned. "I gotta go, I'll call you back." Rosalyn hung up the phone, and rubbed her temple in frustration. Yet, the shrieking cry never ceased, and Rosalyn, slightly concerned, moved up the stairs to Calvin's door. The scream had by now been replaced with a constant cry. Frustration replaced with worry, Rosalyn entered the room with a knock. Inside, Calvin was there, sitting upright, blankets pulled around his stuffed tiger. His eyes were shut tight with fear as he cried.

"You ok, Calvin?" Rosalyn asked gently as she walked in. Calvin, alerted to her presence, stopped crying immediately, and turned his head, trying his best to stifle sniffles, as if to avoid showing weakness. With warmth, she pulled up a chair beside his bed and put a hand on his little shoulder.

"C'mon, tell me what happened."

". . . Nightmare." Calvin managed after a long pause, cheeks slightly red as he gripped the blankets at his sides.

"It'll be ok, little guy. It was just a dream." She gave him an almost motherly look that seemed to calm him down a bit. "Do you want me to stay in here with you until you can get back to sleep?"

Calvin said nothing, but nodded, blushing again as he did. In response, Rosalyn laid little Calvin back down on his pillow, and pulled his covers back over him. Calvin quickly rolled onto his side, pulled the covers up to his neck and closed his eyes. At first, he shook and sniffed, some residual crying keeping him awake, but he fell asleep remarkably quickly. Within minutes, the room was silent.

"Night Calvin," Rosalyn whispered softly as she watched him with a caring, gentle smile on her face. For as much as he was a little terror, his was still just a kid, barely knee-high. And he had a sweet side. He just didn't show it much. Light on her feet, Rosalyn walked out the door and shut it quietly, gently, ever so gently, and headed back downstairs. Just like that, Calvin was alone. Well, alone-ish.

Just as the door was closed, Calvin shot open an eye. "What gives, Hobbes!?" He made a yelling whisper. "You were supposed to pounce on her!"

"I couldn't bring myself to do it." Hobbes wiped a tear. "It was too touching."

"Tch. What good's a pet tiger if it won't pounce on our enemies?" Calvin groaned to himself.

**The End**

**Hi, people. So, let me let you in on something. When I was a kid, Calvin and Hobbes was a bit of an obsession of mine. Like I had printed book collections of the strips and everything. I recently decided to relive the stuff, and it's still pretty good.**

**So, I guess what inspired this was that we don't really get to see enough of Calvin's nice side. Especially with Rosalyn here, who always gets written in to antagonize Calvin and vice versa. I decided to make a little story to show a tender moment between the two, 'cause I thought it'd be sweet. Then when I was done, I thought of the slight twist ending, and I couldn't resist lol. Feels like something he'd do.**


End file.
